For the first time in history, the top five phone manufacturers in China during a quarter were domestic firms.
Just about a month ago we told you that the iPhone was staging a recovery in China. In April and May, year-over-year iPhone shipments rose 52% and 40% respectively. Apple had run into some issues in the world’s largest smartphone market last year starting with the shocking release of Huawei’s Mate 60 line in August. Powered by a Huawei-designed 5G Kirin chip for the first time since 2020’s Mate 40 line, Huawei’s ability to workaround U.S. sanctions to obtain a 5G SoC electrified the country.
Last year, China also banned the use of the iPhone in government offices and wanted those phones replaced by handsets designed and manufactured inside China. But as we noted, Apple recovered and the iPhone was becoming hot again in China. But this roller coaster ride for the iPhone is now dropping again as Canalys reports that the iPhone dropped out of the top five in the country for the first time in years.
